Buffett praises the power of human potential in America in
conjunction with the breathtaking rate of innovation

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Warren Buffett comments on changes in payments and the pace of recovery in an interview with Business Wire CEO Cathy Baron Tamraz for the PYMNTS.com Innovation Project 2013 Conference, March 20-21 at Harvard University (Video: Business Wire).

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Warren Buffett comments on changes in payments and the pace of recovery in an interview with Business Wire CEO Cathy Baron Tamraz for the PYMNTS.com Innovation Project 2013 Conference, March 20-21 at Harvard University (Video: Business Wire).

CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--A video interview with Warren Buffett on the power of innovation has
officially launched the start of the PYMNTS.com's The
Innovation Project™ 2013, a two-day program to challenge the way the
payments and its broader commerce ecosystem thinks, talks, delivers and
ignites innovation. Buffett sat down with Business Wire CEO Cathy
Baron Tamraz and offered his view on the current landscape of the
payments industry and his optimism for the economic future in his
keynote introduction to the program, held at Harvard University.
Business Wire is owned by Berkshire Hathaway and a joint venture
partner, along with Market Platform Dynamics (MPD) in PYMNTS.com.

“The pace of change in terms of what customers are doing, how they pay
us, how they come to us – it’s breathtaking,” said Buffett. “Any company
that interacts with consumers and thinks that last week’s technology and
approach is going to work five years from now is probably making a
mistake.”

As the economy gradually improves, Buffett said he describes himself as
a “realist,” when looking towards the future. But, he said, it’s the way
of America to continually progress, improve, and innovate – a theme sure
to endure throughout the event.

“Our system does work. It works because it unleashes human potential,”
said Buffett. “Never bet against what a human is going to accomplish if
they’re operating in the right soil. And we have the right soil.”

The Innovation Project continues through March 21, culminating with the Innovator
Awards gala emceed by B.J. Novak of The Office.

About The Innovation Project

Over two days, 100 speakers and 500 senior members of the payments
industry will change the way that the payments and its broader commerce
ecosystem thinks, talks, delivers and ignites innovation. On March
20-21 the greatest minds in commerce and payments will assemble at
Harvard University near Boston to kick the conversation about innovation
up to an entirely different level at a program called The Innovation
Project. Speakers and delegates are among the most senior executives
and elite innovators from literally every established payments company
worldwide, along with the CEOs of the most innovative startups in the
space. One of its five modules includes pairing industry CEOs with
external thought leaders such as Al Gore (former U.S. VP),
SteveLevitt (Freakonomics), Eric Reis (The
Lean Startup), RosieRios (U.S. Treasurer), RussellSimmons (RushCard), Raj Date (CFPB)and Josh
Lerner(The Architecture of Innovation) to challenge
the conventional wisdom around what it will take to get merchants and
consumers to adopt new ways to shop and pay. Warren Buffett is
the program’s keynote. The Innovation Project also hosts the
industry’s 2013 PYMNTS.com Innovator Awards, given to 15 of the
industry’s top innovators over dinner, which this year will be emceed by
B.J. Novak of The Office and will introduce delegates to 40 of
the hottest “next generation” payments innovators.

About PYMNTS.com

PYMNTS.com
is reinventing the way in which companies in payments share relevant
information about the initiatives that shape the future of commerce and
make news. This powerful B2B platform is the #1 site for the payments
industry by traffic and the premier source of information about “what’s
next” in payments. C-suite and VP level executives read it daily for
these insights, making the PYMNTS.com audience the most valuable in the
industry. It provides an interactive platform for companies to
demonstrate leadership, popularize products and, most importantly,
capture the mindshare of global decision-makers. It’s where the best
minds and best content meet on the web.

About Market Platform Dynamics

Market Platform Dynamics (MPD) advises businesses based on rigorous
research and analytical tools and frameworks, combined with practical
experience in launching and running companies. The firm specializes in
platforms—businesses that create value by serving as intermediaries
between two or more different kinds of customers who need each other—as
well as businesses that operate in platform-based ecosystems. Typical
engagements are commissioned by C-Level executives who wish to
accelerate the pace of innovation within these highly complex
ecosystems, or who seek advice on strategic direction in the face of
threats to their core businesses brought about by competitors, new
technologies and new business models. MPD’s intellectual underpinning is
the economics of platform businesses—our principals are considered the
field’s pioneers in the commercialization and application of these
concepts to business. MPD is based in the United States but the
principals have extensive experience working in the European Union,
Latin America, and Asia on payments related matters as well as other
platform industry sectors. For more information please go to http://www.marketplatforms.com.

About Business Wire

Business Wire, a Berkshire
Hathaway company, is the global leader in press
release distribution and regulatory
disclosure. Investor relations, public relations, public policy and
marketing professionals rely on Business Wire to accurately
distribute market-moving news and multimedia, host online
newsrooms and IR websites,
build content
marketing platforms and provide audience analysis that improves
engagement with specified target markets. Founded in 1961, Business Wire
is a trusted source for news organizations, journalists, investment
professionals and regulatory authorities, delivering news directly into
editorial systems and leading online news sources, while boosting SEO
and social media engagement via its multi-patented simultaneous NX
Network. Business Wire has more than 30 bureaus worldwide to securely
meet the varying needs of communications professionals and news
consumers.